Neenah Housing Study and Needs Assessment
Photo: Royalbroil, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Spencer served as Lead Analyst and Project Manager on this engagement for Stantec, combining standard secondary-data analysis with a community-wide housing survey and structured interviews with developers, policymakers, realtors, supportive housing providers, and business representatives.
The study found that older homeowners were frequently looking to downsize but couldn't find smaller ownership products — townhomes, patio homes, condominiums — that matched their needs, leaving them in place and constraining the entry-level market for younger families. It recommended a series of zoning changes to encourage infill development near downtown, aimed at reducing construction and development costs, and helped move a reluctant city council toward active support for the affordable housing the community needed.